Tres Leches Cake

Umm guys. I know I talked about staying hydrated with fruit water in my last post but I’m a big believer in moderation. You can’t help but indulge in sweets every once in awhile! Heck, any festivities have to include a cake or two. 😉 And my favorite indulgent cake is Tres Leches. Milk still sounds strange when I describe it as a flavor, but a flavor it is! This cake comes from somewhere in Latin America or Mexico… there seems to be some debate on the origins. Wherever it came from, it’s delicious and whoever invented it was definitely onto something. 😀

Tres Leches has always been one of my favorite cakes. I remember the first time I had a piece… I was in middle school and one of the famlies had brought in a huge sheet cake of the stuff for a cake walk we were having for charity. I won a slice somehow and never forgot how delicious it was. It was so strange at the time… a cake called three milks? And it was super soaked in some kind of sugary milk mixture? Mind blown. I was too young and it was too exotic then, but I never forgot it.

Fast forward to college and I found it again in a Mexican bakery in Indianapolis. I was so excited to see it again! If you are a milk lover then this cake will blow your mind. It’s just that delicious! To sweeten the deal, it is also really easy to make! 😀

I made this cake while fasting and I gotta say… the struggle was real! Especially when I whipped up that batch of whipped cream… I always forget how easy it is to make, but man is it so worth it! Way better than the store bought stuff. 🙂

I served this up when we broke out fasts and MAN. Was it a hit! The cake really soaks up the mixture of the three milks without getting soggy at all. It’s so irresstable with that pillowy white topping of whipped cream with a bright red cherry on top. It seriously had me giddy looking at it while waiting for the time to break my fast! Food blogging reaches a new struggle when you have to photograph in the daylight while fasting… 😀

Basically, just make this cake. Whether you are fasting or not, you won’t regret it! It looks great and tastes so good. 😀

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan liberally until coated (I used some melted coconut oil, but feel free to use anything of your choice!).

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Separate eggs.

Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar on high speed until yolks are pale yellow. Stir in milk and vanilla. Pour egg yolk mixture over the flour mixture and stir very gently until combined.

Beat egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. With the mixer on, pour in remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff but not dry.

Fold egg white mixture into the batter very gently until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and spread to even out the surface. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn cake out onto a rimmed platter and allow to cool.

Combine condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream in a small pitcher. When cake is cool, pierce the surface with a fork several times. Slowly drizzle all but about 1 cup of the milk mixture—try to get as much around the edges of the cake as you can.

Allow the cake to absorb the milk mixture for 30 minutes. To ice the cake, whip 1 pint heavy cream with 3 tablespoons of sugar until thick and spreadable. Spread over the surface of the cake. Decorate cake with whole or chopped maraschino cherries. Cut into squares and serve.

Bon appetit!

Q: What are your favorite desserts? Have you ever had Tres Leches cake?